Vladimir Putin slams US over fresh sanctions, says Russia will respond to American 'insolence'

Savonlinna: Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Moscow will ultimately have to respond to sanctions imposed by the United States that he condemned as insolent towards Russia.

"We are behaving in a very restrained and patient way, but at some moment we will need to respond," Putin said at a news conference after talks with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinisto.

File image of Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. Reuters

He complained that "it's impossible to endlessly tolerate this kind of insolence towards our country," referring to tougher US sanctions that were backed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

Nevertheless he did not specify what Russia's response could be, saying simply: "When the response will be and what it will be - that we will see," implying this depended on what action the US finally takes.

The Russian strongman slammed the intensifying probe into Russian meddling in the US presidential election, saying it bore witness to "a rise in anti-Russian hysteria" in Washington.

He bemoaned the worsening of relations with the United States, saying "Of course, we regret it very much."

Putin also argued that "Russian-US relations are being sacrificed to resolve questions of domestic politics," specifying that "in this case, it is the battle between President (Donald) Trump and his political opponents."

The two countries acting in agreement "could solve very acute problems much more effectively," Putin said, specifying the "fight with terrorism."